Philadelphia May Day Rally Calls for Workers Rights; Hits Staples Deal

Several APWU members joined over 200 community activists in a march through the streets of Philadelphia PA to celebrate International Workers’ Day, commonly known as May Day, on May 1. The crowd stopped at locations throughout the city, including Staples, Wells Fargo, Starbucks, and Comcast to criticize their anti-labor, anti-community policies and to champion the cause of workers’ rights.

Outside the Staples store, Joe Quinlan, political director of the Philadelphia BMC Local, told the crowd about the company’s dirty deal with the USPS, which jeopardizes mail service and local post offices – along with thousands of good jobs.

Wreath-Laying Remembers Mother Jones

Near the nation’s capital, APWU Executive Vice President Debbie Szeredy and APWU Negotiations Support & Special Projects Manager Phil Tabbita attended a wreath-laying ceremony to celebrate the life of labor organizer Mary Harris "Mother" Jones in Adelphi MD on May 1.

The ceremony was the first of about three dozen events planned for the first annual D.C. LaborFest, a month long labor cultural, film and arts festival in Washington DC.